Subsidies just transfer the cost from individuals who cannot afford their premiums to the taxpayer... it does NOT lower the premium.
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11 Years Of ACA/ObamaCare, 11 Years Of Rising Costs
Josh Archambault
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The Apothecary
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Mar 23, 2021,12:30pm EDT
This article is more than 3 years old.
Eleven years of ObamaCare have done little to combat the ever-increasing cost of health care insurance for the American middle class. D.C.’s so-called solution is the “American Rescue Plan” that transfers even more money out of taxpayers’ wallets and to insurance companies.
MIAMI, FLORIDA - JANUARY 28: Pedestrians walk past the Leading Insurance Agency, which offers plans ... [+]
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The difficult-to-fathom $1.9 trillion law allocates tens of billions to make ObamaCare insurance subsidies even more substantial. At face value that may sound like a good way to help consumers, but it just proves once again that Congress views subsidies as a hammer for which high health care costs look like a nail. Unfortunately, it will be the taxpayers paying for this, while insurance companies and hospitals keep charging higher and higher prices.
Washington has just written a blank check to the biggest players in health care for at least two years and these subsidies just cover up problems that will only get worse. The twisted logic of the bill even grants more assistance to higher-income enrollees, compared to those with lower incomes.
To make matters worse, the subsidy expansion will result in millions of workers losing their employer-based insurance. It will crowd out private spending on health coverage as some employers drop coverage and switch employees off employer-based coverage to taxpayer-subsidized coverage.
It is an inefficient way to help a very small group of people while ignoring the many issues that are making health care unaffordable for so many Americans—but it makes for an efficient headline.
Looking ahead, the two-year subsidy expansion will give hospitals and insurance companies enough time to pressure Congress into spending billions more to line their pockets in perpetuity. This time and money would be better spent on expanding price transparency efforts. Eleven years with ObamaCare, and health care is still one of the only industries that surprises its customers with the final bill.